25012025-LT-01.qxd 1/25/2025 12:56 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune VET UNIVERSITY GRAPPLES WITH FUND SHORTAGE GADVASU is grappling with shortage of funds to maintain adequate staff and conduct quality research. P2 » THE CAST OF FILM SHUKRANA BELIEVES CONTENT IS KING NOW PRIYANKA, GUNEET HAIL OSCAR NOD FOR SHORT FILM ANUJA Punjabi film Shukrana, streaming on OTT platform Chaupal, reflects the continuous evolution of industry. P4 Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Mindy Kaling and Guneet Monga celebrated award nomination of their film Anuja. P4 » » FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY MAX 23°C | MIN 7°C YESTERDAY MAX 23°C | MIN 8°C SUNSET SATURDAY 5.54 PM SUNRISE SUNDAY 7:16 AM SATURDAY | 25 JANUARY 2025 | LUDHIANA Students made to carry sand at Jawahar Nagar Camp school Shivani Bhakoo CAMPUS MANAGER DISMISSED, PRINCIPAL SUSPENDED Tribune News Service Ludhiana, January 24 Wake Up Education Department before it is too late. Students of School of Eminence, Jawahar Nagar Camp, (formerly known as Government Senior Secondary School for Boys, are asked to do labourers’ job. Instead of giving them education ahead of their board examinations, the school authorities are asking them to shift bags of sand to the construction site at the school. This is perhaps third or fourth day in a row when the students are asked to do the work as construction is going on at the school. A parent, wishing not to be named, said: ”We send our children to study at the school but they are asked to work like labourers. If the government has to carry on the work at the school, it should grant enough funds to arrange for labourers. Why are our children being told to work as labourers”. Education Minister Harjot Bains has taken serious note of the matter. “An incident at a Ludhiana school where students were punished by making them shift sand for coming late by the campus manager has come to my notice. It is completely unacceptable. Taking strict action, the campus manager is being dismissed and the principal of the school is suspended with immediate effect. Such incidents will not be tolerated. A clear warning is issued to all teachers and school heads,” he tweeted on X. Students carry sand at the School of Eminence, Jawahar Nagar Camp, in Ludhiana. A Class X student said: “There was no harm in doing some work for the school but now when the board exams are approaching, we need to focus on our studies. We have doubts, which need to be addressed.” “Our uniforms get dirty while carrying sand bags but we do the work as teachers have asked us to help the labourers,” the student said. The AAP government has always claimed to bring reforms in the education system, especially in schools. The Schools of Eminence are claimed to be providing the best education to students but this school presents a different picture. However, teachers remained mum over the issue. The principal of the school, Kuldip Singh, said the construction of new washrooms was going on at the school. When asked about students doing labourers’ job at the school, he denied initially, saying nothing like that happened. But when pictures regarding the act were sent to the principal, he said: “I will look into the matter on a priority basis.” However, despite repeated attempts, DEO, Secondary, Dimple Madan, did not respond to calls and pictures sent. Education Minister Harjot Bains has taken serious note of the matter. “An incident at a Ludhiana school where students were punished by making them shift sand for coming late by the campus manager has come to my notice. It is completely unacceptable. Taking strict action, the campus manager is being dismissed and the principal of the school is suspended with immediate effect. Such incidents will not be tolerated. A clear warning is issued to all teachers and school heads,” he tweeted on X. MC lambardar held for seeking monthly bribes from safai sewak Tribune News Service Ludhiana, January 24 The Vigilance Bureau (VB) on Friday arrested Sanjay Kumar, a lambardar in the Municipal Corporation (MC), Zone-B, Ludhiana, and a resident of Sarpanch Colony, Kulliewal, here, for allegedly demanding and accepting bribes of Rs 6,000 per month from a safai sewak. Disclosing this here on Friday, an official spokesperson for the VB stated that the case was registered following a complaint lodged by Sandeep, a safai sewak in the MC, Ludhiana, and a resident of LIG Colony, Jamalpur, on the Chief Minister’s AntiCorruption Action Line. The complainant alleged that Sanjay had been demanding monthly bribes to mark and maintain his attendance records. He further revealed that the suspect had already extorted Rs 1,40,000 from him in the past two years for the same. To substantiate his claims, the complainant provided recorded conversations of the lambardar demanding the bribe money. The spokesperson said during a thorough verification of the complaint, allegations were found to be true, supported by both oral and documentary evidence. Consequently, the Vigilance Bureau registered a case against the suspect under the Prevention of Corruption Act at the VB police station, Ludhiana range. Further investigation in the case was under progress, he said. Ths suspect in custody of Vigilance Bureau sleuths in Ludhiana on Friday. Kin of student allege police 2 nabbed for killing Gang of snatchers busted, 11 held inaction against teacher youngster at village Suspect was suspended for slapping boy week ago Lovleen Bains Sahnewal, January 24 A teacher of Delhi World Public School was reportedly suspended when the parents of a Class VII student of the school complained to the principal that the former slapped the child, causing injury to his jaws, a week ago. Now, the parents have alleged police inaction as even after passing of a week, no action has been taken by them in the matter, the kin said. Child’s father Harish Kumar and uncle Gagan Kumar told the police that one of the Hindi teachers of the boy slapped the latter 5-6 times on January 17. The victim complained of jaw pain as he returned from the school. The parents said the child was not able to eat food so they had to take him to a hospital. The X-ray report revealed that the jaw of the child was fractured. At present, he is undergoing treatment. The father said they met the principal who told him that the teacher had been suspended. They lodged a complaint with the Sahnewal police on January 18 but no action has been initiated in the case by the police so far. “They have visited the police station several times to enquire about the status of their complaint but to no avail. The police could not procure the medical report of the child even after passing of seven days. We have no faith in the system. On the other hand, Tea vendor duped of ~70K by friend Ludhiana, January 24 A tea vendor, Tarsem, a resident of Feroze Gandhi Market, was duped of Rs 70,000 by a person. The victim lodged a complaint with the Commissioner of Police (CP) here on Friday. The vendor in a complaint submitted to the police stated that he runs a tea stall near the Ludhiana Improvement Trust building, where a man used to come. He developed a friendship with him. “The suspect was a loan agent by profession. In January 2024, he demanded Rs 1 lakh from me, citing some urgency at his home. Since I considered him my friend, I lent Rs 70,000 to him. After a few months when I asked him to return the money, he started making excuses and assured to return the money in December. In December, when I asked The victim shows his complaint submitted to the CP in Ludhiana. him to return the same, he again made excuses,” the complainant alleged. The vendor alleged that the man had recently given him a cheque and asked to encash it from bank. When he went to deposit the same, it was bounced due to lack of funds in the bank account. The complainant said he was assured by the CP that the police would probe the matter and justice would be delivered. — TNS our child fears to go to school now. He is afraid of being alone and wants his mother to be with him always,” the aggrieved father stated. Sahnewal SHO Jagdev Singh said the uncle of the child complained to the police on January 18 that the teacher slapped the boy and that they need the matter to be investigated. “As the medical report of the child is still pending, we are not in a position to take any action in the case. After the arrival of the report, we will follow up accordingly,” the SHO added. Meanwhile, the principal of the school, Deepa Gupta, said the teacher has been suspended on the complaint of the parents of the child with immediate effect. Mystery shrouds girl’s death Ludhiana, January 24 A 21-year-old girl died under mysterious circumstances. When her body was being taken for the cremation, her kin raised suspicion that she might have been murdered and informed the police. The police reached the place and stopped the cremation. The body was taken to the Civil Hospital for autopsy. In-charge, Sherpur police post, ASI Balbir Singh, said the girl was suffering from some disease and she died during treatment at the PGI, Chandigarh. On Thursday, after bringing the body to her house, her kin suspected that the girl might have been killed. “We stopped the cremation and during autopsy, it was found that she had died due to some disease. Even the PGI confirmed the death due to the disease. Suspecting no foul play, inquest proceedings were initiated and the body was handed over to the kin,” he said. The girl’s mother had died three years ago while father died three months ago. — TNS Raikot, January 24 The Raikot Sadar police claimed to have arrested two of the three persons booked for allegedly causing the death of a youth of Lohatbaddi village, Iqbaljit Singh. The third suspect, a woman panch of the village, is still absconding. The suspects were identified as Udham Singh of Barundi village, Kulwinder Singh of Lohatbaddi village and his mother Gurpreet Kaur, a member of the panchayat. Harmeet Kaur of Lohatbaddi alleged that the suspects had allegedly served some poisonous substance to her son Iqbaljit on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday after he went missing after dropping some residents in his Tata Ace vehicle in a nearby village. The vehicle was found stranded at the vic- tim’s village on Wednesday. It was on Thursday that the complainant learnt that her son was served poison-laden food by the suspects, causing his death and Gurpreet Kaur, owner of the house from where the deceased’s body was recovered on Thursday, had allegedly tried to hide the body and sequence of events leading to his death. SHO, Sadar Raikot, Kulwinder Singh, said a case under Sections 105 and 3(5) of the BNS was registered against the suspect on Thursday. Udham Singh and Kulwinder Singh were arrested from separate places when they were trying to leave the areas late on Thursday evening, the SHO said, adding that the third suspect was still at large. — OC Man gets life term for violating four-yr-old Legal Correspondent Ludhiana, January 24 The Court of Amar Jeet Singh, Additional Sessions Judge, has sentenced Sham Lal, a resident of BRS Nagar, here, under the POCSO Act, to undergo rigorous life imprisonment. He was facing accusation of violating a four-year-old girl. Delivering the verdict, the court held that the prosecution has successfully proved charges levelled against the accused. “Further, keeping in view facts of the case, it is ordered that of the Rs 2 lakh fine imposed on the convict, Rs 1.5 lakh will be paid as compensation to the victim”, it observed. A case against the accused was registered on April 7, 2024, at the Sarabha Nagar police station, c m y b Ludhiana, following the statement of the mother of the victim. According to prosecution, the girl was playing in the street. The accused lured her on the pretext of giving some snacks. He took her to his house and violated her. The victim narrated the incident to her mother while crying in pain. The parents took her to the Civil Hospital and the matter was reported to the police. After lodging the FIR, the police arrested the man. However, during the trial, the accused pleaded innocence and claimed false implication. But after appreciating the cogent and convincing oral evidence coupled with medical evidence, the court found him guilty and sentenced accordingly. Ludhiana, January 24 The Ludhiana police claimed to have busted a gang of snatchers and arrested 11 of its members. The suspects were identified as Shivam Verma, alias Jogi (23), of Bhamian Khurd, Mohd Afsar (18) of the Tajpur Road area, Vishal Kumar (24) of Jaspal Colony, Rupesh Kumar (21) of Kasabad chowk, Deepak Kumar (24) of the Tajpur road area, Sajan (26) of New Mahavir Colony, Rahul (22) of Bhamian Khurd, Arif Mohd (23), Gautam Kumar (22) of Meharban and Rohit (24) and Ankush Kumar (18) of Bhamian Khurd. DCP Shubham Aggarwal in a statement issued stated that the police also recovered three stolen motorcycles, one Honda Activa scooter, one .12 bore gun, 20 mobile phones, sharp weapon, iron rod from the suspects. He said the suspects had committed several theft and snatching incidents in the past. In further investigation, more recovery and arrest of other members of the gang could be made. — TNS